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Being on the Planning Committee, representing the CLF/CYF, and being a delegate was interesting, to say the least.

I have not have a brick and mortar congregation for 5 years, although there are 14 UU congregations within an hours drive of me. Conferences, General Assembly, committee meetings, and the CYF have been My spiritual home in that time. I think the Ingathering on Wednesday helped fill the other half of congregational life that the annual CLF worship does not: that being the social interaction between members. In some ways, it was like walking into church, and having Coffeehour before Service! It also let me put faces to other CLF members, whom I could then look for in the rest of the week, and is an event that I would emphatically encourage us to continue.

I made it to each Plenary session. You may have seen me as the lad in the purple shirt trying to keep track of time as everyone was speaking at the microphones, ringing that powerful little bell, and causing parlimentary unrest on Sunday evening. All in all, a positive experience, although I am concerned that the Statement of Conscience as passed was transformed into something other than an SoC. Extraordinarily lengthy and unwieldy, I think it’s the worst and best example of a document word-smithed by a committee, and why that is never a good idea.

The CLF Worship service was a wonder, as always. The preview we received of Sources has me chomping at the bit to witness the Cantata in whole, being debuted at GA in Portland, 2007.

I hear that said service has long been known for good preaching, and good music. Something has nagged at me for a while, and it’s been in the last day that I’ve been able to grasp it and shape the idea into words, which I’ll share here: The CLF Worship is very much a worship in the same vein as a Soulful Sundown, with less amplification. This idea is striking to me. What is it about the concepts/people of the CLF, and those of the Young Adult communities, that make them create such similar worship stylings, in isolation of each other? What is present or missing in a given group that brings out or suppresses the potential for worships to be engaging and dynamic as these we find in the CLF and YA communities? I think a deeper look into this could inform the way we look at “alternative” worship stylings.

Those are the insights that I had at GA this year that relate to me as a congregant and delegate, and I hope to continue to study these ideas in the future, and serve as a delegate again in the future.

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Resolved, that the Delegates to General Assembly are charged to work with their congregations to hold at least one program over the next year to address racism or classism, and to report on that program at next year’s General Assembly.

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Good Evening, I am Donald Wilson, the Planning Committee person in charge of Evening Entertainment. Along with the local committee entertainment coordinator, Myke Cowen Nissen, I cordially invite you to 5 evenings of great events in the Renaissance Grand Landmark Ballroom.

Tonight we have DJ Smurf, spinning his own blend of St Louis House. Tomorrow, the Youth and Young Adult caucuses invite you to the All GA Coffee House, which you can sign up for at the Youth and Young Adult booth all day tomorrow in the Exhibit Hall.

Friday, it is not a typo in the programme, nor a showing of a Marx Brothers film, for A Night At The Opera members of the UU Musicians Network are performing Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci.
On Saturday, we welcome one of our own, UU DJ Glo, at the General Assembly Costume Ball. Please come dressed in masquerade, or as you are.

Finally, on Sunday night, local band Jupiter Jazz will perform with
their lead poet a blend of spoken word, deep groove jazz and funk, to see us all home.

So Come, Come, whoever you are. I hope each of you finds something to entertain you this week in our nightly offerings.

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There is a lovely cafe on 10th street at Washington, here in St Louis, named Breve. Free WiFi, Coffee is MUCH better than that swill Starbucks pretends is coffee, and the people are VERY happy to see us.

Great for breakfast and lunch.

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Well, I’m in St. Louis. The drive wasn’t bad (10 hours and leisurely), and we checked into our hotel room, only to find that it’s bigger than our apartment. Cheers to the hotel, and the convention bureau. The Washington Street Bistro, in the basement of the Renaissance Suites is good, if pricey. The french onion soup is the best I’ve ever tasted.

As I write this, I’m sitting in what will be the plenary hall. Right now it’s mess of crates, half built light rigs, strange equipment, and a truck. There’s some minor confusion about who is supplying the stage, but I’m sure you’ll all find things to be the spectacular spectacular you’re expecting upon arrival. Hall 3. Don’t make the mistake I did this morning and think the Hall 1 is the Plenary hall… that’s the exhibit hall. No wonder I couldn’t find my people.